AN: Hi! This is my first ever Harry Potter story, and I have to warn you; I'm very rusty on the canon, lol. It'll be a bit AU for the most part, since Harry was actually born a girl named Lily in this universe, but otherwise I'll try not to stray too far. I could list all the changes here, but I think it'll be okay if you just keep an open mind and bear with me. One thing I'll mention, is that this story will contain lemons. Lots of lemons. :)

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Lily Potter and the Witches of Salem

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Chapter 1:

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Poof!

A sharp cracking sound accompanied their sudden appearance as Lily and Hermione portkeyed into a small sunny square in the middle of a small town. It was an especially long distance to teleport, across continents and oceans, and they both wobbled a bit on the spot as their feet touched solid ground. Lily steadied herself against the stone fountain beside her and Hermione chuckled.

"Well," she said. "Bit of a rough teleport, hm? Still have all your limbs, Lil?"

Lily actually checked, glancing at her arms and legs, and finally put a hand on her tummy. "Got the limbs, but my stomach might be missing."

Hermione chuckled again and looked around. The square was bright with sunlight and there was a horse and carriage in the road, clopping along the gravel. The square itself featured quaint hedges and cobbled lanes. Two women were going by in bonnets and hoopdresses, each with a parasol.

The fountain behind them was tall and carved from marble and on a pedestal stood a trio of alabaster witches in rather scanty robes that revealed long swathes of pearlwhite leg. Lily adjusted her glasses and grinned, her eyes roaming over those thighs and all the way up to their faces. So lifelike. They were perfectly still but then one of them turned its marble neck and favoured the girl down there with a flirty wink before turning back to resume her stillness.

Lily grinned and glanced at Hermione but Hermione was looking out across the square. When she turned to the fountain she chuckled once at the marble maidens and then looked at the gold nameplate set into the base of the fountain.

Salem, home of the Salem Institute for Witches.

Hermione nodded at that and smiled.

"Well," she said. "I guess this is America."

Lily nodded her agreement, finally looking across the town. There were small stores there and horses hitched to rails. Men in suits with frilly sleeves of white lace and extravagant bowties of satin ribbon.

Salem was a small town in Massachusetts but this wasn't just Salem. This was the Salem within Salem, the same way Diagon Alley was within London, protected with charms and hidden from muggle eyes with centuries of enchantments. Preserved in old ways, somewhat stranded in time.

Hermione seemed to like it. She giggled and turned to Lily excitedly.

"This is so exciting, isn't it?" she went on. "No war, no Voldemort, no Death Eaters. Just me and you and final year."

"And Ginny, don't forget."

"And Ginny, yeah. She's probably already at the school by now. It's going to be so much fun, isn't it? I heard the library at Salem is incredible. Hogwarts has more precious volumes, of course, but Salem is completely modernized. I can't wait to get my hands on the latest Arithmancy texts. Hogwarts was so old fashioned in its position on Divination."

"Are you going to miss Hogwarts?"

Hermione thought about that for a moment and then gave a shrug. "A little, but there's so many memories attached to that place. Good and bad. Besides, I think I'm going to enjoy an all girl's school. No more pesky boys. Boys are the worst. I always hated them."

Hermione giggled again, twice in one day, and took Lily's arm. Her bushy brown hair was almost auburn in the sunlight and she looked really beautiful with that excitement in her eyes. Lily grinned at her.

"Just don't forget you have a girlfriend," she said. "I got a feeling you're going to be very popular."

Hermione snorted a playful chuckle. "Not as popular as you're going to be. Girl's schools always have a ton of girlcrushes flying around and I got a feeling a lot of them will be aimed at you. Be careful what you drink from now on, hm?"

Lily smiled and shrugged all that off and just gazed at Hermione.

"There's only one girl for me," she said.

Hermione had to blush. Just a little. Lily was adorable and she was one of those girls who had no idea exactly how adorable she really was. She had her mother's name and her mother's emerald eyes but she had her father's hair. Short and scruffy and almost blueblack in the sunlight. Hermione felt a flush of love for the other girl and she smiled and placed a kiss on her lips.

Then she giggled again.

"This is going to be so great," she went on excitedly as they began to stroll down a lane. "The curriculum they offer at Salem is more interesting than any of the classes at Hogwarts. You wouldn't believe some of the classes I signed us up for. They even have a special women's studies class, and I do mean special."

"But nothing too intense, right?"

"You'll see," Hermione said with a mysterious grin. "I'm just glad the Institute accepted us on such little notice."

Lily laughed at that. "You're the greatest witch in modern history, Hermione. I'm pretty sure any school in the world would take you."

Hermione grinned and squeezed her arm playfully. "Or maybe they only took me because I'm the bestfriend of the new Mistress of Murder, the Dark Lady, the all-powerful wielder of the Elder Wand. Hm?"

Hermione was only joking but Lily's smile became uncomfortable.

"Don't call me that, Herm, it's so embarrassing," she said. "Besides, the wand chooses the witch. I didn't choose any of this."

Hermione laughed and released her arm. Lily always hated being reminded of how much power coursed through that tiny body of hers. Always so humble about her attributes. It was one of the things Hermione loved so much about her.

"Well, it's all in the past now," she said. "This year is going to be nothing but fun and studying and since studying is fun that means it's all going to be fun."

"Studying is fun?"

"Of course! Now, come on, we have shopping to do. We're gonna need everything."

Hermione giggled once more, in truly a happy mood this morning, and together they sailed out of the square and into the street.

The town was fairly quiet and they moved at a casual meander. They were dressed in plain jeans and tops, casual streetwear that seemed just a little out of place in the oldworld magic town, but it was their faces that drew glances. They were two of the most famous witches in the world and they didn't pass a single person who didn't follow them with their eyes, open mouthed or partly in shock. A witch with four children swarming about the hem of her robes stopped and gasped. Lily smiled awkwardly and nodded and Hermione nodded as well. A man dressed in a winecolored vest stood in a shopwindow stroking his chestnut moustache. When he saw Lily and Hermione he stopped stroking it. He didn't resume until they had disappeared down the street.

Lily was looking about at the buildings and the shop signs. Past an American subsidiary of Flourish and Blotts. Hermione made a note to return there for their books. Past cafes were women took coffee of tea, past shops that sold wands and cauldrons and owls and other magical pets, past windows were broomsticks were on display among other Quidditch gear. Lily lingered at that window but Hermione urged her on. They gazed about but there seemed to be no other students from Salem in the streets. Perhaps they had all done their shopping in advance. A man on a horse was clopping toward them and he smiled and doffed his tophat as he went by. Hermione almost curtsied, the regency atmosphere was so immersive.

"It's different from Diagon Alley, isn't it?" she asked Lily.

Lily nodded. "A lot quieter."

"Less medieval too," Hermione observed primly. "No mud or rotten vegetables in the gutters."

Lily smiled and rolled her eyes.

They were going passed a store with wooden mannequins in the window. The mannequins were animated and they were modelling the colourful dressrobes they were wearing for anyone passing in the street. Hermione stopped to point at the establishment.

"Hey, look over there," she said, and then read the sign aloud. "Madam Beaux's Beautiful Boutique. Maybe we can get robes there."

"Okay," Lily said, and they crossed the street.

There was a bell above the door and the bell tingled as they entered as if to announce their presence. The interior of the shop was brightly lit with sunlight through the windows and there was a strong scent of perfume and cloth. Racks and racks of dresses and robes, shoes, parasols, bonnets, mannequins on pedestals who twirled in dresses and performed little curtsies, bolts of heavy material leaning against walls.

There were only a few customers in the store and two of them caught Lily's eye. Two girls. They were standing at the counter and fussing with the pricetags of robes they were already wearing and apparently had just bought. Both of them dark skinned and dark haired and exactly the same age and height. Lily had noticed them because their robes were very revealing and very sexy but Hermione had noticed something else about them.

"Hey," she said. "Is that…"

Hermione drifted forward with a wide grin.

"Padma?! Parvati?!"

The two girls looked up at the exact same time. They saw Lily and Hermione and gasped in delight.

"Hermione?!"

"Lily?!"

Then together with Hermione they all squealed:

"Oh my goooood!"

The two pairs fell together for hugs, laughing at the coincidence. Four old friends from Hogwarts. Lily hugged them both, smiling and mumbling shyly how great it was to see them. Parvati gave her an extra squeeze and when she released Lily she gave Lily a smile and a saucy look that made her blush. Her and Parvati had a thing once, back during the Tri-Wizard Cup. They had been dates for the Yule Ball.

"What are you guys doing here?" Hermione was asking them, but then for the first time she seemed to notice what they were wearing. "And what on earth are you wearing?!"

The twins giggled and stepped back to model their robes. Lily now took a closer look and her eyes almost bulged out of her head.

Wow.

The robes were two piece and scandalous to say the least. Black in color and fashioned from a flimsy material that shimmered like satin. The top piece was similar to a halter, tied behind their necks and draped over their breasts in a very loose fitting fashion before being tied around their backs as well. The garment had little more coverage than a bra and huge amounts of their dark skin was visible. All their shoulders and arms, their midriffs, and even the entirety of their backs as they twirled on the spot. The bottom piece was even more revealing. It was essentially little more than a black leather belt slung around their hips with flaps of material that hung from the front and back in a sexy sort of loincloth. The flaps fell to the floor but they covered precious little. The entire lengths of their long dark legs were visible and they giggled and tilted their hips provocatively to display even more.

"It's the uniform for Salem," Padma said.

"What do you think?" Parvati asked.

Hermione was shocked. The robes looked more like lingerie a witch might wear to bed on a very special night with her partner. She stared at them up and down.

"THOSE are the uniform robes?"

Parvati giggled and gave another twirl, the flaps of her skirt flaring outward to reveal black knickers underneath, the entire garb like the costume of some sultry sorceress or a slavegirl in a harem. The shoes were black stilettoes and the heels were very tall and around their wrists and upperarms they wore gold bangles that bore the crest of Salem.

"Yep," she said. "Aren't they fabulous?"

Hermione ran a hand through her hair and gave a startled chuckle. She might've been a little more indignant if she didn't find it so attractive but the last thing on her mind right now was the evils of objectification.

"Yeah, I guess," she said. "Wow."

Padma giggled and smoothed down her robes with her hands. "Thanks," she said. "But what about you? What are you doing here?"

"We decided to finish senior year at the Salem Institute."

"No, I meant here. In the store."

"Oh. To buy robes for school, I guess," Hermione said, giving those skimpy costumes another skeptical look. But then she brightened up and focused on her old friends' faces. "But really, this is so great to see you guys here. It'll be so nice to have friends right away. Right, Lil?"

Lily didn't hear. She was staring at Padma and Parvati's legs. The material of those black satin loincloths flowed and shimmered and the thighs and calves they didn't cover were dark as chocolate and very delicious looking. Dimly she realized she had been spoken to and looked up at Hermione.

"Huh?"

The twins giggled at her stupification. Hermione gave a long suffering sigh, as if she were used to it, and repeated herself.

"I said it'll be nice to have friends there."

Lily realized what they were talking about and started nodding as if she had been paying attention this whole time. "Yeah," she said. "Friends. That'll be great."

Hermione rolled her eyes. Parvati twisted on the spot coyly, flattered at being checked out, and Padma giggled.

"To be honest, it's not really much of a coincidence," she admitted. "We heard Lily would be going here, and we thought we might as well too. Too much happened at Hogwarts to go back there."

Hermione's brow puckered. "How did you hear?"

"It was in all the papers."

"It was?"

"Of course. It was a big deal for Salem. Their reputation skyrocketed as soon as they announced it. There's going to be tons of new students this year. Maybe even more old friends from Hogwarts. Everyone wants to go to the same school as the Girl Who Lived."

Lily chuckled awkwardly and scratched the back of her neck. "I didn't know it would be a big deal."

Parvati giggled and gave her another one of those saucy looks. "Of course it is, Lily," she said. "You're a hero for witches everywhere. A lot of us really…worship you."

Lily's throat thickened at the wording and the tone but she chuckled as if it was nothing. Hermione gave Parvati a little frown but she didn't say anything. Padma grinned at her sister and turned back to Hermione.

"So you're here for robes?" she asked.

"Yeah, but we had no idea they looked like THAT," Hermione said, nodding at their barely concealed bodies. "The brochures I read must've been a little dated."

Padma giggled breezily. "Well, maybe they can fit you for something more conservative."

"Do you think so?"

"Sure. The dress code seems to be pretty lax."

"Well, obviously."

Lily had been staring at their legs again but now she began to panic at where the conversation was headed.

"Yeah, but…"

The girls looked at her. Hermione had her eyebrows raised and Lily blushed.

"Well, I don't know," she said. "I mean, it's not that bad, is it? I think it'll look nice on you, Herm."

Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes. "I'll bet."

"This place is great, though," Padma went on. "They have all kinds of robes for all kinds of occasions. They even have dress robes for dances and stuff."

Hermione laughed once. "Do they have a lot of dances at an all-girls school?"

"I hope so," Parvati said, eyes locked on Lily. "Lily still owes me a dance from the Yule Ball, don't you Lily?"

Lily chuckled awkwardly and looked at Hermione for guidance. Hermione gave a cool smile to Parvati and took Lily's arm and pulled her girlfriend closer possessively.

"Lily's dancecard is full, I'm afraid," she said.

Parvati smirked, as if accepting some challenge. Padma giggled.

"Well, we better go," she said. "It was nice see you."

Parvati lingered until her sister pulled her away and at the door she called out and gave a flirty wave to Lily.

"Ta ta, Lily!"

Lily was bright red and she nodded at them until they disappeared outside with the bell ringing behind them. Hermione had her hands on her hips and she gave Lily a playful scolding.

"Wipe that smile off your face," she said.

Lily did, suddenly becoming very serious. Hermione burst out laughing at her obedience and shook her head.

From the rear of the premises came a woman with blonde hair in a bun over her head and an extravagant gown of red and gold with lace trim.

"Lillian Potter!" the woman announced in a French accent. "Ze Girl Who Lived."

"Actually, it's just Lily," Lily demurred.

Hermione leaned to Lily's ear. "I guess you're famous even in America," she whispered. "And why are all robe shop owners French, for god's sake?"

The woman came directly to them with a broad and womanly smile. Not old but not young, sailing across the floor with a certain flamboyance. Her breasts were gigantic and they all but bulged out the bodice of her gown. Lily tried not to glance at them.

"I am Madam Beaux," the woman said with a bow and a flourish. "You are here for robes, oui? Come, please. We will fit you right away."

Lily nodded and glanced at Hermione for courage and Hermione smiled and nudged her forward.

The madam already had a tape measure out. It was hovering in the air and the madam directed it with little flicks of her wand. She told the two girls to stand with their feet apart and their arms out. They did as they were told, standing there in their jeans and sneakers as the tapemeasure buzzed about like a humming bird and unfurled and slithered about them like a snake to take their measurements. The madam stood by and jotted notes on a piece of parchment with a peacock feather quill.

After all their measurements were taken they were given robes of appropriate size, two very tiny piles of folded black cloth, and sent to the changerooms upstairs. The changerooms were a row of small cubicles with curtains to close them off from the rest of the store and both girls entered the same one so they could get changed together. They kicked off their sneakers and pulled off their tops and unbuttoned their jeans. Lily kept sneaking peeks at Hermione's body and she felt a flutter in her heart as Hermione's jeans fell to the floor. Hermione had superlong legs, legs that were just outrageous, and Lily loved them.

They removed their bras as well and by now even Hermione was becoming embarrassed. She unfolded her uniform top and looked at it skeptically. In her hands it looked like a scrap of satin. Shaking her head she tied it behind her neck and adjusted it over her breasts before fluffing out her hair. Lily did the same, although her eyes were glued on Hermione. Hermione was now fastening the belt around her naked hips and adjusting the flaps of cloth. Three sides of the cubicle were mirrored and Hermione was shaking her head anxiously at her reflection. Lily was just grinning. Hermione looked incredible.

Finally they were both clad in their new uniforms and they stood side by side to examine themselves in the mirror. Lily's heart was racing in excitement but she tried to hide it because she thought Hermione would disapprove. She bit her lip to keep from smiling too brightly and let her eyes roam over her reflection. Her pale skin was absolutely gorgeous against the black satin and her body was better than she would've thought. She had always been very short—the result of years of being underfed by her muggle aunt and uncle—but even that seemed to work in her favor. With her skimpy black robes and short black hair she looked like some dark little pixie, tiny, sexy, impish in the eye.

Hermione was at least a few inches taller than Lily and she looked like something else entirely. It was very rare to see her in such revealing clothes and she didn't quite seem to know how to wear them. She kept shifting her weight from leg to leg, frowning at her reflection, adjusting her top. Her breasts were larger than Lily's and Lily could see a bit of sideboob. They were wearing black high heels as well, which were part of the uniform apparently, and Lily thought Hermione was an aristocratic beauty, tall and lovely and impeccably sophisticated and sexy.

"Wow, Hermione," she said, staring at her girlfriend. "You look incredible."

The honesty of the compliment seemed to make Hermione loosen up a little. A small smirk even crossed her lips as she gazed into the mirror at her black and scant reflection.

"Yes, well, I suppose I do," she said, unable to deny it. "I'm not sure if I'll ever get used to wearing it, though."

"If I had a body like yours I wouldn't be shy at all," Lily said with a smirk.

"Oh, shush," Hermione said, but proud nonetheless. "My body is nothing special."

"I think it is."

"Then you need your glasses checked."

"If I had no glasses at all I'd still think your body is incredible."

Lily was blushing by now, the thrill of flattery more exciting for her than for the person she was flattering. She was usually very shy and she didn't have much practice at saying those kinds of things.

Hermione was still composed but she was smiling at her little girlfriend. It wasn't really the words that turned her on. It was the look on that adorable face.

Hermione's wand was slung in the waistband of her loincloth and now she removed it and performed a little flick toward the curtain of the changerooms.

"Muffliato," she said.

Lily felt a jolt of excitement. Muffliato was a silencing charm and now the whole cubicle would be silenced from the outside world. A grin grew on her lips.

"What's that for?" she asked innocently.

Hermione smirked. "What do you think?"

"I thought you disapproved of the Muffliato Charm?"

"Only in class," Hermione whispered, wrapping her arms around Lily's neck. "And this isn't class."

Hermione pressed her mouth onto Lily's. Lily's heart began racing. Hermione was cupping the nape of her neck and pulling her closer, into the kiss. Lily let her mouth open and moaned as Hermione's tongue entered. Hermione was so much bolder than Lily was. Always had been and Lily was always ready for it.

"Mmm," Lily murmured. "Oh, Hermie."

Hermione laughed and broke the kiss. "My nicknames sound so gross, don't they?"

"No, they don't," Lily said. "They're as sexy as you are."

Lily's hand was at Hermione's hip and now it started stroking Hermione's thigh. Lightly. Teasing the skin there. Hermione gazed into her face while she did it and now Lily smiled at her.

"So no one can hear us?" she asked.

Hermione smirked. "Nope."

Lily smirked as well and then she sank down to her knees.

Hermione giggled and glanced toward the curtain. Even though the cubicle was silenced that didn't mean they couldn't be interrupted. But there was no one out there and she turned back to Lily.

Lily was kneeling at her feet and smiling up at her. Stoking her legs, up and down. Finally she moved aside the flap of her black satin loincloth and yanked down her knickers a little bit before leaning and applying a gentle lick to her pussy.

Hermione breathed in pleasurably. Her eyes had closed for a moment and when she opened them she watched their reflections in the mirror. Lily on her knees, moaning and licking at her. Gripping her hips. Clad in those sexy black robes that covered nothing. Hermione could see all of her milky back and the backs of her high heels. This girl who had vanquished the most powerful evil wizard that ever lived. Who had singlehandedly won the war. Here on her knees in those satin robes and licking at her like something enchanted into slavery.

Hermione smirked and wove her fingers into Lily's hair. Her breathing was becoming heavier. Her moans longer. Lily could hear it and she knew what Hermione liked. She flicked her tongue at the other girl's clit and made her gasp and then she latched her lips to that nub and began sucking. Hermione moaned louder and louder and finally she orgasmed with a loud groan.

Good thing the cubicle was silenced.

Lily laughed and gave her girlfriend a few more licks before finally rising. Hermione had a very satisfied look on her flushed face.

"Mmm," she murmured. "Maybe these robes aren't so bad after all. They look really nice on you too. But…"

Hermione flicked her wand and suddenly Lily's robes fell away.

Just fell, as if they weren't even attached to her body anymore. The black satin pooled at her feet, along with her underwear, and suddenly she was standing in front of Hermione utterly naked. Hermione grinned.

"…I think I prefer you without them," she said.

Lily squealed in excitement and then covered her mouth and glanced at the curtain. But they were still silenced and Hermione only smirked and drew her closer.

"Now, don't be shy," she said. "Come here to Hermione."

Lily stepped into Hermione's arms and looked up at the taller girl. Hermione smiled down at her and cupped her cheek affectionately.

"I love you, Lily," she said.

Lily smiled brightly. "I love you too, Hermie."

Hermione chuckled at the nickname she didn't like and then she pressed her lips to Lily's once again. Lily moaned right away and allowed her body to arch into Hermione's. Hermione deepened the kiss with her tongue and reached down and grabbed a handful of Lily's small naked butt.

Lily squealed and giggled and broke the kiss. Hermione smirked and squeezed that warm softness and looked over her shoulder at the reflection in the mirror which showed the smaller girl in the taller girl's arms with those fingers digging into her buttocks.

"You know," Hermione whispered seductively. "You really do have the cutest little arse."

Lily giggled as Hermione groped it and gave it a playful spank and then Hermione turned her around. Lily settled back against Hermione and the taller girl began fingering her so that they could watch in the mirror. Cheek to cheek, Hermione smirking, Lily flushed and moaning. Her breasts were small and completely bare and the nipples in the center of them were stiff and pink. Hermione's hand was between Lily's legs and she rubbed at her and probed into her wetness until Lily gasped and climaxed in her arms.

Lily smiled through the pleasure that radiated through her body and as her breathing slowed she opened her eyes and turned to Hermione. Hermione cupped the nape of her neck and gave her another long kiss.

Afterwards they giggled and put their robes back on before dispatching their old clothes with flicks of their wands. They came into the store in their new uniforms and the madam gave them a round of applause and told them how wonderful they looked. They purchased other robes as well, three different sets of uniforms, a winter cloak, and even dragonhide gloves that came to the elbow, and had everything sent on to the school. Lily paid for them both out of a small sack of gold coins. The robes had no pockets or any place to store the sack but a quick incantation of holding took care of that. Lily stashed the coins behind her back as they emerged out into the sun in their new robes and Hermione joked that she wouldn't ask where Lily was hiding them.

Out on the streets they again drew glances but this time it wasn't their faces. Hermione and Lily walked with their arms linked and smiled boldly at passers-by, somewhat empowered by their outfits. These people must've seen Salem girls in uniform a lot but maybe none of those girls were quite as magnetic as Lily. A man went by on a horse and even the horse turned to look at her. The horse clopped on, not watching where it was going, and plowed into the back of a carriage. A flare of snorts went up as the horse stomped and neighed in embarrassment and Lily and Hermione giggled and continued on.

With their robes purchased they backtracked to Flourish and Blotts and purchased the textbooks they would require. Lily left it all to Hermione, since she was less enthusiastic about schoolwork than her girlfriend. In truth she didn't even know which subjects she would be studying. She had left that to Hermione as well. All she cared about was that they were in the same classes, even the difficult ones. After the war with Voldemort and the battle of Hogwarts Lily had become rather blasé and carefree about the future. All she wanted to do was relax and be with Hermione. Nothing else was important to her anymore.

After leaving Flourish and Blotts and arranging their books to be sent to Salem they visited a few other stores for various supplies. Hermione had a list and they methodically went through it. Quills. Parchment. Caldrons and mortars and phials and various alembics. Lily observed the acquisition of the alchemy equipment and asked idly if they were taking potions. Hermione laughed at her lack of interest in her education and didn't bother answering. The clerk behind the counter was totting up their purchases on a scrap of parchment. He wore spectacles and he had a nose like a beak and he kept stealing glances at Hermione's body. Until he noticed small little Lily glaring at him with eyes that once stood down the Dark Lord himself and then he stopped.

At lunch time they stopped at small café and sat together at a table on the terrace while a broom swept the floor all by itself. They had a sandwich each and paid with a single gold coin and sallied into the street again.

It was nice how the entire town was under enchantment. It had such a different feel from Diagon Alley or Hogsmead. Lily was actually becoming excited to see the school. She wondered how different it would be from Hogwarts.

While they were strolling down the street Lily found herself pausing at a window. It was a pet store and in the window there was a snow white owl in a cage that looked exactly like Hedwig. Lily looked at it for a long moment. Of all the casualties of the war, human or otherwise, Hedwig was one that hurt the most.

Hermione put a hand on Lily's back.

"Thinking about Hedwig?" she asked.

Lily nodded. "Yeah."

Hermione rubbed her back for a while and then she smiled and pushed open the door.

"Come on," she said. "Let me buy you something that'll keep you company while I'm studying in the library."

"Couldn't I just sit with you?" Lily asked, trailing after her girlfriend.

"You could," Hermione said with a smile, "but that would be terribly clingy. Come on, let's have a look."

They proceed up and down the aisles while birds squawked at them from cages and toads sat staring. There were rats and squirrels and other small rodents and there were even magically miniaturized wolves and bears that paced the floors of their cages like puppies.

Lily roamed the store in a certain melancholy, appreciating Hermione's intentions but knowing nothing could ever replace Hedwig, until she saw a small kitten that was running loose on the floor. The kitten had huge eyes and it was so cute it made Lily smile. Lily picked it up and instantly it began purring. It's fur was a tawny brownish color and it reminded Lily of Hermione's hair.

"She likes you," Hermione said with a smile.

Lily grinned. "Could I call her Hermione?"

Hermione cringed in embarrassment. "Do you have to?"

"Well, she has your hair color," Lily said. "And she is very intelligent looking."

The cat turned to Hermione and looked at her as if to verify this. Hermione looked at the cat skeptically, as if unsure whether the beast was indeed worthy to bear the mantle of her name, and finally she sighed and nodded.

"Fine," she said. "You can call her Hermione."

Lily giggled and gave the kitten a kiss on her head.

They couldn't carry it out into the street, though, so they made arrangements for her to be sent to Salem. By now they had been shopping for hours and it was midafternoon in the streets. Hermione had taken Lily's hand and she was guiding her back up the sidewalk.

"I guess there's only one more thing we need," she was saying.

"What's that?"

"Broomsticks. Especially for you. If you think I'm dating anything less than the star seeker of the Salem Sirens, you've got another thing coming."

Lily grinned. Finally something she could be excited about.

They had passed the store earlier and now they came directly back to it. As they were approaching the door swung open and three witches emerged into the sun.

All three were blonde and all three wore Salem robes. They were chatting among themselves and Lily took the opportunity to check them out. One of them was taller than the others, the leader of the trio, and she had such sexy legs that Lily's heart skipped a beat. Long, tanned, perfectly slim. Lily's eyes roamed upward over the rest of her body, her midriff and the loose black satin covering her breasts and finally up to her face. She wore tasteful make up and she was arrogant in the eyes and with her golden blonde hair she looked very American somehow.

Lily and Hermione were crossing the street and Lily was staring so hard she almost tripped in the gutter. Instead she stumbled slightly and the three blondes looked over. The taller one seemed to recognize her and a cocky smirk appeared on her lips.

"Oh, look," she said. "It's The Bitch Who Lived."

Hermione was taken aback by the abruptness of that. "Well," she said to Lily. "That was blunt."

Lily brushed it off and even attempted to smile at the gorgeous blonde.

"Just Lily," she said modestly.

The blonde scoffed and turned to her friends. "Just Lily," she mocked, mimicking a British accent. The two other blondes snickered and the taller one turned back to Lily and spoke with an American accent. "My name is Rosalie Redthorn. I would say welcome to Salem, but that would be a lie. We don't want you British peasants in our school." She then turned her eyes to Hermione and looked down her nose at her. "And especially not mudbloods."

Lily darkened but Hermione was unfazed. She had heard all the insults before and she was no longer some schoolgirl. She was a strong and confident witch.

"Really?" she said to the blonde, unimpressed. "Mudblood?"

The blondes snickered again. Lily stepped forward.

It was a small gesture but it caused the blondes to stop snickering. The taller blonde was an inch taller than Hermione but Lily looked her steadily in her eye.

"Voldemort and his pureblood propaganda are dead," she said. "I'd know, I killed him myself. With this wand."

She took the Elder Wand out of her belt. Two of the blondes gasped and stepped back. The taller one stood her ground and frowned but she didn't speak. Lily smiled at her.

"Funny thing about the Elder Wand," she said. "It's so powerful that even a witch as strong as me can barely control it. I've had lots of accidents with it. Usually after someone calls Hermione a mudblood. It just makes me so angry that…"

She flicked the wand.

The blondes jumped but nothing happened.

Lily smirked.

"…that sometimes I just lose control," she explained casually. "Never know what'll happen then, do we?"

All three of them were clearly intimidated but the taller one concealed it best. She glared at Lily and Lily tried not to focus on how sexy her ice blue eyes were.

"You don't scare me," the girl sneered. "And just remember. Salem is our school. Not yours."

With that, she spun on a heel and strode across the street. The two other blondes scurried after her.

Lily and Hermione watched them retreat in the midafternoon sun.

"Reminds me of Draco," Hermione commented offhandedly.

"Draco was never that hot," Lily said with a smirk, watching that tall blonde strut away angrily in her high heels and skimpy robe.

Hermione rolled her eyes and pulled Lily toward the store.

"Not even our first day and we've already made enemies," she said with a sigh. "We're just natural born troublemakers, aren't we?"

"We better watch out," Lily agreed with a grin. "She might call us more names."

Hermione laughed as she pushed open the door. "After battling Death Eaters, bullies don't really seem so frightening, do they? Thanks for sticking up for me, by the way." Hermione bobbed quickly and put a kiss on Lily's lips. "My hero."

Lily smiled and felt a flush of happiness as they went into the store.

The store was filled with rows and rows of broomsticks of every size and model and with an entire range of Quidditch equipment. Kneepads, elbow pads, helmets. They browsed but they didn't have to browse long. Top of the line was what Lily was interested in and soon they found it.

It was in its own special displaycase. Silver shaft with white bristles. Lily stared at it in awe.

"Wow," she said. "It's an Artemis Arrow."

Hermione raised a brow. "Artemis what?"

Lily grinned and touched a hand to the glass. "Arrow," she said. "Artemis Arrow. I read about these in a magazine. It's the fastest broomstick ever put into production and one of the most expensive. The shaft is constructed of synthetic unicorn horn."

Those facts even managed to impress Hermione. "Wow," she said. "But for me, I think I'll go with a standard Swiftstick. I'm not much of a flyer."

Lily grinned at her. "You'll never keep up with me on a Swiftstick."

Hermione grinned right back. "You'll just have to slow down then."

Lily giggled and gave her a kiss before scampering off to find the shopkeep.

They bought a broomstick each and Lily was hardly out the door before she hopped onto her brand new Artemis Arrow and zipped directly upward with a squeal of delight. Hermione watched her for a moment, looking up into the sky where her girlfriend was already very small among the clouds, and then she sat on her Swiftstick and gently accelerated into the air.

Lily was laughing and doing a spiral pattern with her flimsy robes fluttering all about her and the wind riffling across her body. The Artemis Arrow was as smooth as silk. No drag at all. Easily the best broomstick she had ever flown. She couldn't wait to get on a Quidditch field and nail a snitch in front of a hundred screaming girls cheering for her. She just hoped there would be room for her on the team.

Lily slowed down as Hermione caught up and together they hovered high in the air with the small town of Salem far below. The sun was only now beginning to set over the hills in the west and there was an orange cast to the sky. The hills rolled away to the south and the east and in the north there was a large blue lake shimmering in the distance with several buildings situated around it.

"That's Salem," Hermione was saying. "Just a short flight to the north. We'd better hurry if we're going to make the sorting ceremony."

"Okay," Lily said excitedly. "I'll race you!"

"Lily, I don't want to—"

Lily zoomed past in a blur of silver and a vacuum that sucked a gust of both Hermione's hair and her robes. Hermione sight and corrected her hair, sitting there on her broom in midair, and finished her sentence to herself.

"—race," she said.

Then she turned her broom and sped forward to catch up with Lily who was shouting with glee and doing loops through the clouds.

—

AN: There it is, lol. First chapter. What did you think? Hope it turned out alright. This story is mostly a request from a friend, so I'll be following most of my friend's ideas. I really am hopeless at the canon, lol. Next chapter more characters will be introduced, including Ginny and a few other familiar faces from Hogwarts. This chapter was to just set the stage. Anyway, hope you liked it. Let me know what you thought. :)